If We Were Having Coffee #6

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imageIf we were having coffee, I would tell you that the positive thoughts appear to be working and this week has proven to be a good one. I’ve found myself responding to The Bloke’s enquiries about my day with stories of good lessons and interactions with students, funny staffroom jokes and little achievements that I’ve accomplished, which is something I haven’t been able to do for a while… and it’s Friday evening. Nothing is ever negative about Friday evenings – I settle down with The Bloke and the cats in a warm, clean pair of jammies, watch some pointless television and get my blog on! I also discovered that I’m destined to inherit a fortune – I was contacted by someone in Burkina Faso who has informed me that she has been left $3.1 million, of which she is willing to share 50% with me! All I need to do is send across my full name, date of birth, occupation, bank account numbers and passport details. Hmm… Maybe not.

If we were having coffee, I would tell you that I am delighted to hear that the Elvis exhibition has arrived in London – quite fitting during what would have been his 80th birthday year. My mother’s lifelong dream is to visit Memphis, (which my sister went to last year), but as I can’t afford to pay to take us to America, this is the next best thing. She doesn’t know that I’m booking tickets yet, but I can’t wait for her reaction when I tell her. I like doing these sorts of things for her – I took her to Glen Campbell’s final tour after his Alzheimer’s diagnosis and later to see Jack Jones in concert (which had the best seats ever), and last year I surprised her with tickets to see The Commitments musical in London, complete with a meal at The Ivy and a hotel room at Leicester Square. It isn’t much, but these are the sorts of memories I cherish and I enjoy seeing the look on her face  – I see them as little thank you’s for being a constant support. I’m very lucky.

If we were having coffee, I would tell you that the blog has also been amazing recently too – I’ve written my first guest post in quite a while for my friend Steve, met some lovely new people, indulged in random conversations and have been able to read some wonderful posts. My post on Stumble Upon, ‘The Tale of a Sociopath’ is still going, and another has been picked up and is currently being shared around, although not to the same level – ‘Professional Or Hobbyist?’ is a love it or hate it sort of post that was Freshly Pressed in November 2013 and it incited both positive and highly angry comments throughout, mainly because I believe that many misunderstood the context of which it was written.. or it just pissed them off. Either way, it provoked a discussion, which I always like from blog posts.

Blogging!

Blogging!

If we were having coffee, I would tell you that the most surprising thing in my recent blogging activities was the response I received to my advertising promotion at the beginning of the month – inspired by my New Year resolution to ‘take the risk’ I decided to take move onto the next step and offer four advertising spots a month for bloggers and companies wishing to increase their traffic. I assumed that it would take months to get any form of reply, but I was delighted to receive an email within a matter of hours. Over the last week, I’ve gained two sponsors – Jolene at ‘Valley Girl Gone Country’ and Helena Turbridy’s ‘Effective Change For Life’. Both are beautifully written, engaging and interesting and you can find both in the top right corner of my blog – please go and check them both out! However, it hasn’t stopped there – both have seen an immediate increase in their stats (ask them if you wish to find out details). Even more amazing, the Feburary spaces are completely filled already, and I have already had a space reserved for March and another for July. Awesome. If you are interested in reserving a space for March and beyond, visit this post…

If we were having coffee I would tell you that, while it has been a wonderful week in my own life, the world outside has experienced yet more tragedy, the most recent being the awful events in Paris. I’ve attempted to write about it on several occasions, but after realising that my words couldn’t it justice, I have decided to leave you with the most beautiful tribute I have seen. The picture was wrongly attributed to Banksy, but I am glad that his popularity has allowed this gorgeous image to get a large amount of well-deserved publicity. My thought are with the victims, their families and the people of France.

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What about you guys? If we were having coffee, what would we talk about?

The ‘If We Were Having Coffee’ conversational posts were created by Part-Time Monster. You may be interested to know that she is doing a coffee blog link up this weekend… Create your own coffee posts and join in over the weekend!

You can also find me on Twitter and Tumblr @suzie81blog and don’t forget to check out my Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/suzie81speaks

 

43 thoughts on “If We Were Having Coffee #6”

  1. I would say I am glad your year is off to a positive start! Mine isn’t negative, but I can’t point out anything overly exciting or good either…which may not be a bad thing. Calm waters, all that jazz 🙂

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  3. That was a great coffee post and I literally just finished a cup, so we kind of did have coffee. If we were having coffee I’d have to talk about Paris. It’s very distressing to me from across the pond and I can imagine it must be even more so over there. On the positive side I get to go to Atlanta next week and warm up at bit.

    • Hi Phil,
      I would like to talk about Paris too but am on Summer holidays at the beach in Sydney and missed vital segments of what’s happened and now it looks too hard to work it out. I made a real commitment to take more interest in global affairs after the Lindt Cafe Siege in Sydney and the the Pakistan Massacre which followed, as a separate incident. But it’s not that easy to keep track, especially when you’ve not only come in after the start but hopefully at what is the end.
      I really feel the need to inject more love into our world and I see living by the Golden Rule as a good start. For me, trying to maintain a loving atmosphere on the home front is a good place to begin but also perhaps more challenging. That’s really where the rubber hits the road. xx Rowena

  6. Sounds like your new year is off to an awesome start. If we were having coffee, I’d talk about going to Washington DC. I love visiting the city even in the winter. I just wish I felt safe in the mall at night; It’s beautiful at night. We’d also talk about the UK. I was born in England, but I haven’t been there since I was 2. It’s my life long dream to visit as much as I can. I have a friend who lives in Nottingham, and I want to see her too. I’ve finally saved enough money- now all I need is the time.

  8. Hi Suzie,
    If we were to have coffee today, I’d follow up on your previous post about cheering up in January and a post which was written by your musical friend, Steve. I had a good think about what my 10 songs would be. Here goes in no particular order:
    Bruno Mars: You Can Count on Me
    Many Beatles songs.
    When You Wish Upon A Star
    Mariah Carey: Hero
    John Lennon: Imagine
    ABBA: Dancing Queen
    Pink: Try
    Puff the Magic Dragon
    Roy Orbison Crying.

    I would also point out that in addition to having coffee, I’d defintiely be having a chocolate brownie or similar. We just had friends over for lunch and they brought over the best chocolate brownies ever. So moist and sludgy. So, I’d also be talking about them too.
    xx Rowena

    • Ooh I love chocolate brownies! I wrote that post on Steve’s blog as a guest post – glad you like it! I like your list, although I’m a bit confused with ‘Puff the Magic Dragon?

      • Puff the Magic Dragon was sung by Peter Paul and Mary. Here’s the Utube link:

        I was a bit confused about which of you had written that post. So that makes you the violinist then. I have been playing for 3 years and actually broken my foot before going on stage to play Christmas carols 2014. Of course, as we violinists are made of tough stuff, I still went on and performed…with considerable assistance getting up the stairs.
        So I would also love to talk violins with you if we were to meet for coffee xx Rowena

      • I know the song, I just haven’t seen it in a list before – I love the eclectic mix! That’s great that you play the violin… I don’t play it nearly as much as I should! You played with a broken foot??

      • I broke my foot just before Christmas when I was about to go on stage at the school Christmas carols night. If you read my about, you’ll see that I have fairly complex medical issues and my ankle flipped over on the join in the grass and the asphalt and I was down on the ground. The pain was pretty intense but as you would appreciate, the show must go on. I had blood pouring from my knee, broken ankle and my “colleague” had put the music in the wrong order so we were playing bits from memory but we did it.
        It is actually quite a miracle that I can play the violin at all. I was born with hydrocephalus, fluid in the brain and had poor coordination, particular before it was diagnosed and I had a shunt put in mid 20s. I also have a muscle wasting disease so playing my violin has been a struggle and yet I’m overcoming the odds. Learning the violin has done wonders for me and actually helped me learn to ski by applying the same principles. I’ve written a bit about my violin journey on my blog and there’s a category up the top. It really has been quite a miraculous journey. I’m going to recommend a book but I’ll post this before I it google. Stay tuned xx Rowena

      • The book by Suzuki is called “Nurtured by Love”.In the aftermath of WWII and dropping the atomic bomb on Japan,we thought music was the ideal way to engender world peace and build harmony throughout the world.
        My brother learned Suzuki violin for years as a child and was quite good and I learned for a year but couldn’t manage the bow with my undiagnosed issues and gave up.
        It can look like Suzuki method is trying to build child prodigies etc but when you read the book, you learn his objectives were quite different. He talks about how children with severe disabilities were able to overcome them and learn to play well. Reading that, really encouraged me as a struggling beginner.
        By the way, while I’m typing away here a little Rainbow Lorrikeet is hopping along on the balcony outside. He’s looking in at us wanting some bread or perhaps to shelter from the rain. Such a cutie. I’ll be posting a photo soon.
        Hope you continue to overcome the January blues and once again, I’ve enjoyed our cup of coffee. xx Rowena

  10. Keep up the coffee times with positive results. I do like Elvis’ music, my favorite songs being the popular, “I Can’t Help Falling in Love with You” and “Down in the Ghetto.” I would have been happy to see the London exhibit or visited Graceland for some cake!

  11. I’d thank you for the hospitality, ooh and aah a little over the Elvis exhibition and ask all about your plans. Then I’d congratulate you on your blogs success – I’m so glad the new feature is taking off. I’d maybe gush about the new in-linz feature to the weekend coffee event, because it means I get to meet such incredible people and all in one place. Enjoy the rest of your day 🙂

  14. You are doing a wonderful thing for your mother. I am sure she will love the exhibit about Elvis Presley. So glad you are having a good turn out with your monthly offer. Have a wonderful weekend. 🙂

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